December 3, 2009

36 Weeks

We are now 36 weeks and this last week has been packed with so many things! Bear with me as this blog entry will likely be rather lengthy...

This last week we celebrated Thanksgiving with my in-laws and I learned how to make cranberry fruit relish. The Thanksgiving celebration was wonderful and we really enjoyed spending time with our family! The cranberry relish also turned out quite well, which was a relief to me as I had never attempted cooking this recipe and I wanted to bring something wonderful to the meal, rather than something that looked pretty but wasn't quite edible!

This last week Jonathan and I celebrated our ten month wedding anniversary with a relaxing evening at home. It was so strange to think that this may be the last anniversary we have as a couple without a baby. While we are thrilled to think of our baby joining us, it is bittersweet.

Over the weekend, we conquered the project of decorating our house for Christmas! Compared to the sparse decorations we put up last year, the decorations this year are quite impressive. Our living room, kitchen, bathroom, and even the "man cave" downstairs are currently boasting Christmas spirit. I don't think I could ever become tired of looking at our brightly-lit tree and enjoying the beautiful ornaments!

Also this week, I have found sufficient energy to have a few more cooking adventures! I have added a significant number of meals to our freezer this past week including turkey soup and spinach cheese pie egg bake, bringing our current meal total to 49 frozen meals. Honestly, I'm uncertain if I will be able to fit many more meals into the freezer, but given that I have a few inches left here and there, I may just try!

Amidst the late-night/early-morning cooking these past several days, I also made a double batch of chocolate chip cookies so we would have some to enjoy now as well as later once Baby G joins us. Unfortunately, since I am currently unable to enjoy the cookie dough due to the raw egg content, I wasn't able to test out my cooking creation until it came out of the oven. As such, I am merely drooling over the picture of this delicious concoction...

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

On the baby front, this week has also been very busy. December first arrived and I was suddenly struck by the realization that we will be having a baby this month. To be honest, that was a very hard day for me; I've had nine months to get used to the idea that I will be a mother in December, but now that it is finally here, the thought of several more weeks of pain followed by labor, delivery, and drastic life-changes was overwhelming.

This feeling of being overwhelmed hit home as I was putting groceries away in the fridge earlier this week. I literally sat on the floor in front of the fridge sobbing as I put away the carrots. Jonathan came up to me and asked what was wrong; I explained to him that I felt as though we were never going to have the baby and that I was so tired of being in constant pain. In that moment, I really needed unconditional love and support from Jonathan- which was exactly what he gave. He held me and asked what he could do to make this time easier on me, offering to do anything I needed.

Looking back at that situation with perspective, I know that I am truly blessed to be married to a man who would offer to do anything I needed in order to make these last few weeks easier. Jonathan is an amazing man and it is my fervent hope that we are able to raise our little boy to be like his father, the kind of man who would take on a completely self-sacrificing attitude for his family.

Now, several days later, I've moved beyond this feeling of uncertainty (at least temporarily) and am counting the days until we meet Baby G. For anyone interested, the count is currently 27 days...

Beyond the emotional adjustments that have occurred over the last week, I have also completed another "to-do" on my list- the carseat check. I took our carseat down to the Police Station and was thrilled to find out that we had installed our seat perfectly! Again, huge thanks go out to my husband as I did little more than read the instructions, as my belly makes the production of getting into the backseat very challenging!

We went in for our 36 week OB appointment yesterday. Baby G is doing very well but he is running out of room, which is causing added pressure on my pelvis leading to much of the pain that I have been experiencing these last few weeks. We also had an internal check to see if we are progressing toward labor and there are no labor signs just yet. Apparently the old wives tales of incorporating a lot of walking, sex, and bouncing on a birthing ball have done nothing for me; next up... pineapple and spicy food!

Hello. My name is Alyssa and I'm married to a sweet man named Jonathan. We're building a life together with our wee ones in our farmhouse nestled in the heart of the suburbs. Through photos and words, I chronicle our lives as a family of six as we strive to get the most out of each day.